ON THE SIZE OF THE EXCEPTIONAL SET IN NEVANLINNA 2ND FUNDAMENTAL THEOREM FOR CERTAIN CLASSES OF MEROMORPHIC FUNCTIONS

Some conditions on the size of the exceptional set that arise in Nevan linna's Second Fundamental Theorem are established, showing that previ ous sharp results can be improved by restricting the class of function s considered and suggesting a close relationship between the size of t he exceptional set and the lower growth of the characteristic function . Examples of functions of rapid growth possessing exceptional sets ar e built, showing that these conditions are sharp for the class of func tions considered.